The year 2018 was not so rosy for the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) as its crucial indicators depreciated by 19.77 per cent due to uncertainties surrounding the forthcoming general elections.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the exchange which was named the third best performing stock exchange in the world in 2017 with over 43 per cent return-on-investment performed dismally in 2018.

Experts said the market, which started the first quarter on a positive note, nosedived due to the withdrawal of funds by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) who were worried over the forthcoming elections.

A breakdown of the foreign investment outflow from the exchange between January and September 2018 showed that a total of N513.49 billion left the country during the period.

This amounted to 63 per cent increase in total outflow compared with N315.04 billion withdrawn in the same period in 2017.

Although both total foreign investment inflow and outflow increased month-on-month in September relative to the previous month, outflow grew at a higher speed, rising 27.6 per cent to N43.78 billion from N34.31 billion in August.

Foreign investment inflow, on the other hand, rose by 10.6 per cent to N40.54 billion from N36.7 billion in the previous month.

Investment experts, who attributed the sell-offs and the attendant foreign investment outflows to political risks, said the trend would be sustained throughout the election period.

Specifically, the All-Share Index ,which opened trading in 2018 at 38, 243.19, shed 6, 812.69 points or 17.81 per cent to close at 31, 430.50, eroding over 43 per cent growth posted in 2017.

Similarly, the market capitalisation, which opened at N13.609 trillion, dipped by N1.89 trillion to close on Dec. 31, 2018 at N11.720 trillion.

Commenting on the performance of the market, Prof. Uche Uwaleke, head of Banking and Finance Department, Nasarawa State University Keffi, described 2018 as a very disappointing year for the equities’ market.

“With positive returns of over 40 per cent in 2017, Nigeria was ranked the third best performing stock market in the world after Argentina and Turkey.

“On the other hand, between January and December 2018, the market has plunged into a bear territory having lost over 20 per cent from its peak in January when it posted 16 per cent return.

“The dismal performance of the market has been in spite of improved corporate results announced by listed companies as well as stronger macroeconomic performance,” Uwaleke said.

He noted that the economy expanded faster in 2018, in terms of GDP by 1.95 per cent, 1.5 per cent and 1.8 per cent in the first,second and third quarters respectively, when compared with 0.8 per cent averaged in 2017.

“Again, the inflation rate is lower and the exchange rate has been stable on the back of stronger external reserves helped by higher oil prices and output relative to 2017.

“In the light of these, two major factors explain the weak performance of the market in 2018.

“The first is exogenous, the increasing yield environment in the US following the normalisation of interest rate by the US Federal Reserve. The second is the political tension ahead of next year’s general elections,” Uwaleke stated.

He highlighted the factors that would shape the performance of the stock market in 2019 to include the monetary policy stance of the US Federal Reserve, the extent to which the US-China trade tension and Brexit impacted global economic growth.

Others are: the ability of OPEC and its allies to keep oil prices high, political tension/outcome of the country’s elections, the fate of the 2019 budget and the direction of monetary policy in Nigeria.

On the way forward, he urged the Federal Government to defuse political tension and ensure free, fair and credible elections to boost investors’ confidence.

Uwaleke added that effective budget implementation would help create the right environment for both domestic and foreign investors.

Mr Sola Oni, a chartered stockbroker and Chief Executive Officer, Sofunix Investment and Communications, attributed the lacklustre performance of the capital market to illiquidity.

Oni said massive share dumping by nervous portfolio investors and their Nigerian counterparts who were apprehensive over the 2019 general election led to the trend.

He said the development was reinforced by unguarded utterances of the political class.

Oni said the factors that would shape the market in 2019 generally revolved around the weak global economy of which the exchange could not be insulated.

He explained that the outcome of the next elections and the ability to tackle the ongoing economic challenges, especially investment in infrastructure, management of fiscal and monetary policies, would shape stock market activities this year.

Mr Ambrose Omordion, the Chief Operating Officer, InvestData Ltd., described 2018 as a volatile and bearish year due to the interest rate hike, mixed corporate earnings and political uncertainties.

Omordion said peaceful conduct of the general elections, good economic reforms and diversification would drive economic activities in 2019.

A Nigerian Airline, Air Peace, on Wednesday said it had expanded its operations to the Murtala Muhammed Airport 2 (MMA2), Lagos with an inaugural flight to Kaduna.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the airline’s Embracer 145 jet took off at 7:20 a.m. from the MMA2 enroute Kaduna Airport.

Speaking on the development, Mr Chris Iwarah, the Corporate Communications Manager, Air Peace, said the airline was delighted to have been able to move some part of its operations to the MMA2.

Iwarah noted that although Air Peace had its main hub at the General Aviation Terminal (GAT), Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, the expansion aimed at positioning the Airline for better services.

He said Air Peace would henceforth operate its Lagos-Akure, Lagos-Asaba, Lagos-Kaduna and Lagos-Port Harcourt as well as NAF Base flights from MMA2.

Iwarah said other new domestic routes to be will be launched soon would also be done from the terminal which would in future accommodate all flights under the airline’s subsidiary, Air Peace Hopper.

“ We are quite hopeful that the expansion of our Lagos base to MMA2 will afford us the space and convenience to deliver first-class flight experience to our loyal customers.

“As a customer-oriented carrier, it is only strategic that we seek a better operational atmosphere for seamless passenger facilitation and exceptional customer service experience.

“This exactly is what MMA2 offers with its state-of-the-art facilities and we are indeed proud of our decision to annex it to our Lagos hub,” he said.

Mr Rodger Whittle, Executive Director, MMA2 described the action of the Airlime as  a fantastic thing for the operator and same for the MMA2.

He said: “I think it is very exciting for us that Air Peace has come to MMA2 and we can now happily say that all the airlines in Nigeria operate from the MMA2.

“It brings the destinations of MMA2 to 24. Air Peace is bringing Akure as well as Port Harcourt NAF Base.

Mrs Eniola Ade-Solanke, Head, Corporate Communications, MMA2 said the airport terminal had the capacity for regional operations and attracting major airlines through the provision of excellent passenger experience.

Nigeria’s crude oil daily production recorded an upward swing of about 2.09million barrels in 2018, translating to a 9 per cent increment, compared with the 2017 average daily production of 1.86million barrels.

Pitched against the low-level daily crude oil production in 2016 and what obtains now, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Group Managing Director, Dr. Maikanti Baru, said the nation had maintained a line of consistent year-on-year improvement.

For the crude oil increment and other milestones recorded by NNPC in the outgone 2018, Dr. Baru, who made the submission in a comprehensive end of year message to staff of the corporation, touted the new business models his team has emplaced in the national oil company’s old and new business entitles as raison d’être for the giant strides.

A release today in Abuja by NNPC Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Mr. Ndu Ughamadu, said the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), Nigerian Gas Company (NGC), Petroleum Products Marketing Company (PPMC), Duke Oil, NIDAS and Integrated Data Services Limited (IDSL), were among the re-engineered companies listed by the NNPC GMD in his statement.

Ughamadu said Dr. Baru singled out NPDC, the corporation’s Upstream flagship company, as the major contributor to the Industry’s success story in 2018, expressing enthusiasm on the 52 per cent daily crude oil production growth by the company vis-à-vis its 2017 performance.

Dr. Baru in the end-of-year statement explained that the average production from NPDC’s operated assets alone grew from an average of 108,000 of oil per day (bod) in 2017 to 165,000bod in 2018, describing the feat as the strongest production growth within the Oil Industry in recent times, even as he added that it was worth being celebrated.

The GMD said NPDC’s equity production share which stands at 172,000bod, representing about 8 per cent of national daily production, was no less impressive, saying the desired results are outcomes of initiatives his Management team emplaced, among which, he noted, are the Asset Management Tea (AMT) structure, Strategic Financing, Units Autonomy and security architecture framework.

Of the Industry milestones in the outgone year, Dr. Baru described the 200,000bop addition which the Egina Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO), completed and sailed away to location in August last year, added to nation’s daily production, even as he disclosed that the project achieved First Oil at 11.20pm on 29th December, 2018.

In end-of-year statement, the release by the NNPC spokesman stated the NNPC GMD relayed to staff, a save of $1.7billion dollars by NNPC, with corporation’s Joint Venture (JV) partners over a five-year tenor repayment plan, saying already the corporation has defrayed $1.5billion of the arrears.

Dr. Baru made the promise that NNPC would stick to the Repayment Agreement with the JV Partners while transiting to self-funding IJV modes with the corporations partners, saying that tiding up the Cash Call issues has led to increased commitment and enthusiasm to invest in Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry even as it has also boosted NNPC’s credit profile internationally.

Dr. Baru concluded the achievements of NNPC in the Upstream sector by listing other milestones achieved by his team to include: reduction in contracting cycle for Upstream Operations to nine months from an average of 24, even as the corporation targets a six months cycle; lowering of production cost from $27/barrel to $22/barrel; and improving on the security situation in the Niger Delta through constructive engagement and dialogue with relevant stakeholders.

Dr. Baru revealed that in the frontier basins, NNPC has intensified explorations activities in the Benue Trough, with the expected spudding of Kolmani River Well 2 on 19th January, 2019.

He explained that activities would resume in the Chad Basin as soon as there is a greenlight on the security situation in the enclave.

In the Midstream, the NNPC GMD stated that in 2018, Nigeria achieved an average national daily gas production of 7.90bscf, translating to 3 per cent above the 2017 average daily gas production of 7.67bscf.

He said out of the 7.90bscf produced in 2018, an average of 3.32bscfd (42%) was supplied to the Export market, 2.5bscfd (32%) for Reinjection/Fuel Gas, 1.3bscfd (16%) was supplied to the domestic market and about 783mmscfd (10%) was flared.

The GMD stated that out of the 1.3bscfd supplied to the domestic market, an average of 71mmscfd went to the Power Sector, while 470mmscfd was supplied to the Industries and the balance of 69mmscf delivered to the West African Market through the West African Gas Pipeline (WAGP).

Dr. Baru said NNPC would bridge the medium-term domestic gas supply deficit by 2020 through the corporation’s Seven Critical Gas Development Projects (&CGDPS), adding that a reputable Project Management consulting firm is collaborating with an NNPC team to achieve accelerated implementation of the projects.

He assured that full implementation of the project would boost domestic gas supply from about 1.5bscf/d to 5bscf/d by 2020, with a corresponding 500 per cent increase in power generation and stimulation of gas-based industrialization.

Dr. Baru said all existing power plants in the country now had a permanent gas supply pipeline infrastructure, even as he stressed that the corporation would continue to expand and integrate its gas pipeline network system to meet increasing domestic gas demand.

He listed key gas pipeline infrastructure projects on which, he noted, significant progress had been made in their execution to include: Escravos-Lagos Pipeline System (ELPS II), Obiafu/Obrikom-Oben (OB3), Odidi-Warri Expansion Pipeline (OWEP), Trans Nigeria Pipeline Project (TNGP) – Ajaokuta-Kaduan-Kano (AKK) Pipeline, Trans Nigeria Pipeline Project (TNGP) and Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline (NGMP) Project.

In the Midstream Refinery Sub-sector, Dr. Baru regretted that the nation’s three refineries had not undergone Turn Around Maintenance (TAM) for an aggregate of 42 years combined.

Despite the challenge, he explained that major rehabilitation works were carried out in all the three refineries, saying, WRPC has its Distribution Control System (DCS) successfully upgraded, PHRC had major interventions in Fluid Catalytic Cracking Unit (FCCU) and Power Plant Unit (PPU) fixed, while KRPC was undergoing major repairs of its FCCU, Catalytic Reforming Unit (CRU) and Crude Distillation Unit 2 (CDU2).

He noted that efforts were afoot to get the original builders of the refineries to carry out TAM on them after securing favourable private funding for the exercise.

In the Downstream Sector, Dr. Baru noted that even though 2018 was riddled with some supply shortages, he was delighted that the corporation rose to the occasion with the support of President Muhammadu Buhari and the resilience and hard work of NNPC staff, saying as at today, there is fuel availability in the nook and cranny of the country.

“…It gladdens my heart to hear the positive comments made by motorists and filling-station owners during my routine checks on some filling stations at the eve of Chrismas”, Dr. Baru stated.

The GMD disclosed that NNPC imported a total of 15,874,734.82 MT of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) otherwise called petrol through the DSDP and the NFSF arrangement in 2018, representing 62% increase over the 2017 supplies of 9,807,264.61MT, saying that as at today, the national oil company has 2.98 Billion litres, equivalent to over 59 days sufficiency at 50 Million litres daily evacuation rate.

Dr. said the corporation’s depots had been resuscitated and put to use through decanting of over 140 Million litres of PMS nationwide, explaining that systems 2B and 2E pipelines supplying petroleum products to South West, South-South and South East Regions have been resuscitated.

GMD assured that NNPC was on track in respect of the corporation’s Twelve (12) key Business Focus Areas (BUFA), and the vision of President Buhari to improving the status of oil and gas infrastructure through ensuring products availability to support national economic recovery and growth.

He lauded the contribution of the corporation’s Downstream outfit, NNPC retail, saying it played a significant role in ensuring continuous supply of petroleum products to Nigerians through its Mega, Affiliates and Leased stations.

Dr. Baru touted the company’s sale of 1.2 billion litres of petroleum products in 2018 as against 1.1 billion litres in 2017, representing a 7% increase.

He said the feat was achieved through an addition of 40 new Affiliate and Leased stations, which he said, brought the company’s network to 618 stations nationwide.

He enthused NNPC Retail had transformed from loss making to profitability.

“We are currently planning for a better performance and achievement in 2019 especially with the continuous innovations and creativity in the downstream sector and the performance bond signed by all the relevant heads of our operating units. Continuous improvement as one of the principles of World Class Organizations is going to remain our key word in 2019. 2018 was empirically better than 2017, we believe, plan and strive to achieve a better performance come 2019, by God’s Grace”, Dr. Baru concluded in his end-of-year statement.